Belated
by Ryuacchi
Summary: White Day fic. Shishido suddenly gets into trouble about Choutarou. Unexpected help comes to him.


**Disclaimer:**_Tennis no Oujisama _was created by _Takeshi Konomi._

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**Belated**

They say that things are better to be late than never. The reason for that was because it shows that you still care for that event you missed, even though you failed to be in it. Whether it is a late piece of homework, or reaching the last full show, it applies to all. This is the moral of our story.

Shishido Ryou, regular of Hyoutei Gakuen, sighed. The problem was that his doubles partner seems to be angry at him. Ootori Choutarou wasn't the type to be angry at someone, in fear of hurting one's feelings. However, he does seem to ignore him, and he doesn't speak to him, even when being in doubles. This was a problem for their coash, Sakaki Tarou. The Shishido-Ootori pair was their strongest doubles, one that could rival the skills of the famous Golden Pair. If this continues, their chances of winning will become slimmer.

This is why Shishido is currently at the rooftop, pondering why would Choutarou be so angry at him. He thinks best at this place – the wind as at its strongest here, the wind blowing through his chocolate hair. (His hat flew off earlier, now laid forotten on the ground) The sun was then covered by a cloud, turning Shishido's surroundings darker. Even though his mind was searching for a memory where he insulted his doubles partner, the person outside was silent. However, he was so preoccupied with his thoughts that he didn't notice a fellow regular enter the same rooftop.

"Enjoying yourself, Shishido?"

He didn't move. There was only one person in Hyoutei who could speak Kansai-ben that way. "Oshitari." He said.

"Care to keep me company?"

"Fine."

Oshitari smirked, as he sat beside the dash specialist. "Is there something wrong?"

Shishido looked back at the genius. "How - "

"You're less grumpy than usual. If you had no problems at all, you would tell me that you won't care, or mumble how lame the situation is."

Shishido snorted. "Whatever." he then paused. "Yeah, I have a problem. It's about Choutarou. He seems to ignore me."

A sigh came out. "I think I know why."

Shishido was surprised. "Tell me!" He demanded.

"...You didn't know?"

"Know what?"

"The date today."

"February 13, the day before Choutarou's birthday. Why?"

This time, Oshitari was surprised. "February 13? No. It's _March_13."

Shishido blinked.

Silence came.

"WHAAAAAAAAAT!?!"

"You're a month late. The reason why Ootori-san is a bit angry at you is because you missed his birthday."

Shishido can't help but to pound his head towards the fence. It this wasn't a dire situation, Oshitari would've laughed.

"I can't believe it! I missed Choutarou's birthday!!"

"You can always make it up to him?"

The pounding stopped. "How?"

"Tommorow's March 14."

Realization crept to Shishido's eyes. "White day..."

"Give him white chocolates or something. You could make it 2 or 3, if you want." Oshitari paused. "You _are_more manly than Ootori-san."

"...Oshitari, don't tell me you also read romance stories about forbidden love." Shishido was burning red.

"Well, whatever's your relation with Ootori-san, it shall remain as a mystery to me." Oshitari replied before leaving Shishido alone.

The next day, Ootori Choutarou found not one, but _three_boxes in his locker. They initally thought they were from fangirls, but it turned out that all of them were from none other than Shishido. All of them contained chocolates – one is dark, one is white, and one is Belgian. They also had separate cards on them, each one with a different message:

_Happy Birthday, Choutarou._

_Happy Valentine's Day._

_Happy White Day. Sorry for forgetting about your birthday._

That was enough for Choutarou to act normal to his doubles partner once again.

And therefore, Hyoutei was back to normal. The focus on the tennis club was no longer between their famous doubles pair, but the usual chaos every practice, such as Atobe barking orders here and there, Shishido having yet another quarrel with Gakuto, and the price of 1000 yen to anyone who could wake up Jirou without the help of Kabaji. But for Shishido, something has changed:

It is better to be late than never. Oshitari Yuushi taught him that.


End file.
